Kobe among finalists for Hall of Fame
The star-studded Class of 2020 for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame took one step closer to induction as Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and the late Kobe Bryant were all officially named as finalists on Friday.
They were joined by 10-time WNBA All-Star Tamika Catchings of the Indiana Fever, coach Kim Mulkey of three-time women’s NCAA champion Baylor, fivetime Division II coach of the year Barbara Stevens of Bentley University, fourtime NCAA coach of the year Eddie Sutton and former Houston Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who won two NBA titles.
From the moment Garnett, Duncan and Bryant were all eligible to be inducted this year, there was no doubt all three — each among the greatest ever to play the sport — would be enshrined on Aug. 29 in Springfield, Mass.
Remembering Kobe
The Los Angeles Lakers announced Friday that fans seeking to attend the Feb. 24 memorial for Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna at Staples Center must register to purchase tickets and there will be no outside overflow areas. Top-tier tickets will be priced at $224 each, while others will be two for $224 and some $24.02 each -combinations of numbers that like the date, 2/24, represent the No. 24 worn by Bryant and the No. 2 worn by Gianna on her girls basketball team. Proceeds from the ticket sales will benefit the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation.
Rising high
Charlotte Hornets guard Miles Bridges sent out a tweet at halftime, after a subpar first half. “Alright bet,” the tweet read. The smart money was on a big second half for him, as the Flint, Mich. native represented Team USA strongly in the second half on his way to the MVP award and a 151-131 victory over Team World. Bridges finished with 20 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. Team USA used a huge third quarter to take a commanding lead. As the final few minutes ticked away both teams turned the game into their own slam dunk contest. The first- and second-year players took turns trying dunks, and while the shooting percentage wasn’t high, the fans gave most of the attempts a 10.